Le fils de Jean

I admit having a strong appetite for the filmography of the French director Philippe Lioret. His films rhyme with simplicity, altruism, empathy, benevolence and sensitivity. Nowadays, this kind of observation is unfortunately rare. Moreover, Philippe Lioret has become a label of quality.

Following a call, a young Parisian dad learns of the death of his Quebec father when he did not know him, absolutely not, his mother having always hidden his identity. This trip on the other side of the Atlantic will be the opportunity to discover a step-family he did not know. And to know a little bit about himself.

My favorite scenes: Mathieu and Bettina together near the painting (there is a before and an after). Mathieu, his brothers and Pierre around the lake (a disappointment up to the expectations). The near-final scene in the car (it's particularly moving: it's not my style, but I almost had tears in my eyes)

As a synthesis, the movie is excellent. The casting, the dialogues and the directing are delightful.

With sadness and distress I've read (some) of the IMDb reviews on Le Fils de Jean. However, it shouldn't be surprising as most people are prone to blockbusters and sound bytes.

Although I wouldn't exactly describe this as the art of slow cinema, it nevertheless moves along with a gentle pace, portraying gentle emotions and the odd outburst or two. Primarily it's a film about relationships between parents and children, and vice versa and between siblings.

Very seldomly do French films hit the viewer over the head with melodramatic confrontations and every realisation and experience rushing along like car chases. Most of the time they allow the viewer to discover the characters and have rare looks into their inner beings. Although this is not particular or peculiar to French films, a general sense of melancholy and romance are ever subtly present in French works.

One reviewer in particular slates the acting. I can only presume that said person is not acquainted with the works of Ingmar Bergman, Andrei Tarkovsky, Theo Angelopoulos and most works from Europe. Even thrillers such as The Hunt (Thomas Vinterberg) are not shoved down viewers' throats with grandstanding.

The great French film masters (Robert Bresson, Agnes Varda et al) also, like thorough painters, take time to uncover their characters, their stories and their situations.

I won't compare Le Fils de Jean (directed by Philipe Lioret, also responsible for the wonderful Welcome starring Vincent Lindon) with any of the great masters' films, but it's a gem. Mathieu, who visits Canada to find out more about his (presumed dead) father Jean and is taken to the lake where he supposedly drowned, finds himself in a different world. Albeit all French speaking, even certain expressions and customs are foreign to him (and vice versa again).

This is not operatic, melodramatic, grand scale acting. This is gently coming to grips with the soul and marrow of every character. This is real. Sincere. Supported by excellent photography, the wonderful script is brought to life by director and actors and the film is strewn with small, delicate delights. And. a big AND, not everything is explained as in Hollywood films. The viewer can come to own conclusions. Mine were certainly being moved, being transported and being touched.

This is worth a few revisits.

This movie made me really angry. As I watched these pitiful actors, except for Gabriel Arcand and the two brothers, I almost break my teeth. The French is reacting like a tourist, but in the worst manner a tourist can be, he is always watching and learning, the dialogues are extremely boring and useless. This movie is one of the most less good movie I have ever seen. The actors from Quebec are talking like they would talk to a alien from another planet when they talk to the extremely useless and boring French guy, It's like they don't come from Quebec when you hear them talk, they looks like they are ashamed of the accent. The last 10 minutes are nice. But again, the French buy a toy for his son at the airport ! What a mess... 90% of the movie is worthless.

There is some great acting in this movie after a novel by Jean-Paul Dubois.Especially by Gabriel Arcand, who plays Jean's old friend. But it took me a while to get over the initial irritation about all the phone scenes in the first 15 minutes. Everybody is constantly making phone calls. The movie even starts with a conversation over the phone. That's pretty poor cinema, and a false start for a movie that eventually unfolds it's true story. Then things heat up and get interesting. Don't go to this movie for the camera work though. You will be disappointed. It's shot in a nondescript documentary style, almost like a TV-series. Go to Le Fils de Jean for the acting and the secret that this movie has. I also like how all the characters were put down in the story. It all feels very 'naturel', like people you could know and hang out with yourself.

A different take on a now grown adult seeking the dad & thus the family he didn't know because of a one night stand decades ago. The man a French Canadian w/a Parisian female. A small twist. Logical, but no DNA searching or comparisons. A bit incomplete ending. This seeking adult has a marital problem of his own which is unresolved if not made more complicated by a not healthy attachment to another female. The scene of two adults w/children on their laps in the back seat of a car is a serious & potentially deadly error in the script - dumb. Lots of smoking by a lot of people. A cheap way to create a visual that also has it's consequences - also dumb. Outcome w/painting misplaced; should be w/female. Not a well resolved ending.